How to Get Started on Redecorating Your Home

Admit it. Every ­time you walk by the room with the outdated décor, it rankles a little bit. You want to redecorate but you never know where to start. So you walk away and put it out of your mind.

Stop. Turn around, go back in the room. Take a seat and let’s talk about how to get started redecorating a room.

Decide Your Style

Start gathering inspiration from anything you come across. Tear out pictures from magazines, Pin pages you see from design blogs or take pictures of friends’ homes that have a design style you love. Once you have these compiled, look to see what is common among these pictures. Do you love certain paint schemes? Are you always picking houses with wood flooring? Do you have a specific mood you are going for? Write down everything you love.

If you want to copy a room directly from a magazine or other inspiration, go for it. There’s no shame in using it as a main template for your room. You will be adding your own personal touch later.

Choose a Focus

It’s easy to start decorating a room if you choose one item to focus on then work out from there. Your room’s focal point can something large like a couch, a table or a built-in element like a fireplace. If you can’t think of a focal point, think about what the room will be used for. For example, if it’s an office, you might decide to decorate around a desk.

Find a Color Scheme

This is a simple way to choose a color scheme. Find an item that you really love, like a pillow, piece of art or curtains. Use only the colors in that item to decorate the room. Make one of the colors the dominant color of the room and use the others as accent colors. If you’re afraid of too many colors, choose one and work in the variety of shades and hues within that color. Don’t be afraid to try out different textures and patterns in elements like your pillows and throws.

Update the Foundational Elements

If you’re going to change the color of a room or the flooring, now is the time to do it. It will be more difficult to paint or install flooring if furniture and decorations are already in place.

Ready, Set, Shop

This is the fun part! Head to the stores and start picking out your furnishings and decorations. You can do it all at once or gradually cultivate your collection over time. Start with main pieces and work around them. Items you’ll probably want to invest in are statement furniture, like couches, tables or artwork. If new furniture isn’t in your budget, focus on the small elements you can change. Even mismatched furniture can look great if you have a common theme running through your room to pull everything together.

Don’t forget lighting. For a square room, three sources of light arranged in a loose triangle pattern will give you the best coverage.

Put it All Together

Now’s the time to see how it turns out. If you’ve followed your original design inspiration it will turn out beautifully.

Keep It Updated

Don’t give the décor a chance to get outdated. Make a concerted effort to keep the room updated. The easiest way is to change a little bit of the room every season. Adding different colored pillows to a neutral couch is a perfect way to do this. For example, baby blue pillows on a gray couch will be a welcome addition for spring. Come summer, you can change them to lemon yellow pillows for a sunny, fresh look. In the fall, pumpkin or sage pillows will bring the outside colors in. These little changes will create a room you no longer avoid going into.

Need help choosing flooring for your upcoming decorating project? Contact Tish Flooring for a free in-home flooring consultation.